Coverage of the House Committee Hearing where the new immigration detention facility in isolated Karnes City, Texas was described as a “holiday on ICE,” by Chairman Lamar Smith:

WASHINGTON — New Immigration and Customs Enforcement standards for detention centers — like the $32 million facility recently opened in Karnes City — drew criticism from House Republicans on Wednesday.

“The administration’s new detention manual reads more like a hospitality guideline for illegal immigrants,” said Smith, R-San Antonio.

Immigrant rights advocates called the GOP criticism cruel and accused Smith and GOP House members of treating undocumented immigrants as “less than human.”

Rights groups spoke with reporters as the House Judiciary subcommittee on immigration held an oversight hearing to review administration policy. The panel took no action.

“Labeling this hearing ‘Holiday on ICE’ is particularly offensive and demonstrates serious disregard for the abuses that so many detainees have had to endure,” said Cheryl Little, executive director of Americans for Immigrant Justice.

The new standards for detention facilities were prompted by documented cases of physical abuse of immigrants and, in some cases, sexual abuse of women, rights advocates said. Read more …

As Senate Democrats and Republicans spar over a proposal to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, measures to shield immigrants from domestic violence have become a sticking point.

The proposed legislation would expand existing protections for battered immigrant women, making more visas available to victims of abuse and expanding the situations in which immigrants could seek relief to include stalking and dating violence.

That has contributed to a legislative impasse, with opponents of the bill saying it would present more opportunities for immigrants to exploit the system. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, presented an alternate bill that would tighten restrictions on abuse victims seeking visas.

Would Revised VAWA Increase Immigration?

“VAWA is meant to protect victims of violence,” Grassley said in a statement. “It shouldn’t be an avenue to expand immigration law or to give additional benefits to people here unlawfully.”

The Violence Against Women Act allows immigrants who are married to abusive American citizens to petition for legal status on their own behalf, without relying on a violent spouse. But the current dispute largely concerns a special type of visa, created when the bill was reauthorized in 2000, that allows undocumented immigrants to gain legal status if they cooperate with law enforcement officers on an investigation. Read more …

"Every year for at least the last four years, an officer, guard or other employee at an immigration detention center in Texas has been criminally prosecuted for sexually assaulting an immigration detainee. Every time, the government issues a press release about the prosecution and trumpets its efforts to protect detainees and punish bad actors — the implication being that sexual assault in detention is limited in scope and due merely to the actions of a few bad actors.

Common Sense Immigration means policies and programs that promote a healthy and robust Texas economy, support and strengthen families, encourage integration of newcomers, and provide for the well-being of all Texans over the long-term. It means avoiding policies and programs that waste limited local and state government resources, promote distrust and fear among communities, or take resources away from top public safety priorities. And, Common Sense Immigration means grounding public safety discussions in reliable information and best practices, and avoiding fear-mongering or scapegoating.
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